Tracking Your Progress

Tracking Your Progress

2015 came and went before we could even blink. The things we set out to do, be it travel or something health and fitness related, may have gone just as quickly. Did you track the places you went in 2015 ? Did you track the memories you had or the people you met? Sometimes we experience more than we think we do but by the end of the year but have nothing to refer to in order to say, “Wow, look at all of this great stuff I did/people I met”. The same goes for your fitness. Maybe you did make some incredible changes but simply just didn’t notice. In 2016, I want you to start tracking what you do in the gym, even if it isn’t your thing. Here’s why.

Writing down simple day to day wins and loses can give you a map of where you are going, where you have been and detours you are taking. Here’s an example. You tell yourself that for the next 30 days you are going to eat clean and your goal is to drop about 5lbs. You are going to change what you eat and will record calories and food in your head (never a good idea). Day 30 you remeasure and realize you haven’t made a change. In fact you have gained weight. How did this happen? You of course have no idea and since you did not track anything at all, you have no ability to figure out what went wrong and what you need to change. If only you would have written down all the good and all of the band things you consumed, maybe you’d have a better idea of what route to take or not to take the next time around.

Another great reason for tracking your progress is for reflection and motivation. It is great to go back and see what you have accomplished. So great in fact, that recording alone can allow you to be your own motivation, which is always the best motivation. Many of our members have come a long way from day 1. Often times they find a sticking point or “plateau” and it can be very frustrating. But if they have recorded their progress, they can go back and easily see they have come a long way from day 1.

Tracking your progress is easy. Take a picture, write it down or use Evernote. All of these are fine. The only wrong way to record your progress is by not doing it at all. So take the extra 5 minutes per day and make it happen.